COSTUMES ! COSTUMES ! Here we go....

Is it time to kick off a costume thread for this season ? I was recently made aware of this very interesting article on icenetwork.com , and it seemed a really good springboard for diving into the costume swamp once again.

Judging from the article , you can see that many skaters do put a lot of thought into their costumes but we know many need to pay more attention .. Sometimes a self designed costume works better than an effort by a well known designer ( Alissa's costumes have often been among the most attractive in a given season ).

I was very impressed with Caro's costumes last year , and wonder why all that money was spent on her previous designer costumes, which , though beautifully artistic if you saw them on a mannequin , were always too short at the back ,and the poor girl often had to suffer the indignity of a wedgie ( not to mention the nipple malfunction of a couple of years ago )..simply not designed ( or executed ?) with athletic activity foremost in mind. It was as if, to the designer , Caro was a vehicle for the costume , instead of the costume being an accessory to her skating ..

There are trends that crop up and either hang on seemingly forever ( what's with the gloves ?)..or fade and then get brought back with a vengeance. Some , I hope, will never see the light of day again...such as the "Trapped in Tulle and Tatters" look of the late '90s-early 2000s

I suppose at a stretch, Caro's chartreuse / green dress from last year could be said to be in this category, although the neckline and sleeves are the same on both sides.. which goes to show that sometimes it's not the most basic design idea that's bad , necessarily..but that people can't resist going overboard with it. Too much decoration , a too extreme difference between the two halves.

Both Jeremy and Kanako's efforts were extremely distracting..and it doesn't matter if they had some rationale for the designs... If the costume makes it more diffucult to fully appreciate the skating , it's not your friend.

I want to move on to make a start on the costumes we're beginning to see this year, but I'll have to do it in sections, as this is getting mighty long....but I love the Nick Verreos quote at the close of the article about uniforms.. I think it might be wise for skaters to use this word to themselves sometimes ,instead of "costume"... It might help some of them to employ a little restraint , now and then.

Also, I noticed that under the Jeremy Abbot photo was a Nick Verreos article..

..in which he makes the point ( with some examples) that a costume is often reworked as the season progresses. ( and sometimes we've seen not just a slight reworking of the idea, but something completely different )

I think we should remind ourselves of this as we move into the season..you know, before we or at first viewing.

And for me, every costume has to answer these questions..Does it flatter the skater ? Can the skater move freely in it , without fear of malfunction ? Can we clearly see the skaters movements ? Does it relate to the music or theme ?

I'll have to come back with the next bit..but .. jump in guys..( you know you want to..)

Am I the only one who liked S/S's Pink Panther's costumes? I think the colors were perfect for the music and they were well-designed... And, for me, Caro's dresses last season were close to perfection, her FS's one was simply perfect for her, for the music, for the choreography, it was HER dress! You could see that she loved performing wearing it, it gave her confidence! And, may I share one of the worst costumes from last season? This: http://searchsafer.com/imgdetail.php...%20sheherazade! I think those pants were too evident, you were forced to watch them instead of Mao! Then there is obviously the Yu-Na/Akiko dress http://searchsafer.com/imgdetail.php...0suzuki%202012... What I would like to see in the costumes next season? Originality, new ideas, something elegant so see but with the courage to try!